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[punch999]

Well since I did one of those quizes online.... It said that I would masturbate myself to death. Seeing as that is a probable cause of death for me I willl go with the hmmm. Living out my death sentance I got from myyearbook.com?

[rlbell]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Quintopotere @ Aug 19 2006, 11:26 AM) [snapback]249598[/snapback]</div>

I agree in asking that.
If there were no pleasure in sex, the humanity could be ended long time ago...
[/b]

Darwinist answer to why sex is pleasurable: Human children need so much care during their early life that some mechanism is needed to ensure that both parents stick around to keep the little brats alive.

The theist answer is that God realised, in his infinite wisdom, that nothing so important as the continuation of the human race could depend merely on our sense of duty.

Once you take the unnatural step of seperating the joy of sex from the duty of child rearing, you get the voluntary suicide of whole cultures, as members can no longer be bothered to reproduce at replacement levels.

[rlbell]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Grinder @ Aug 18 2006, 11:08 PM) [snapback]249546[/snapback]</div>

Quite a rare find, might I add.

And ribell, if we're going to discuss religion now, I'd like to add some things. The way of life religious people lead depends on how serious they are about their religion. For example, there's always some people who say "Yeah, I believe in god, but I don't go to church every sunday" - They call themselves christians. Or "Oh, I believe in Allah, but I don't fast" - they call themselves muslims. Most do, at least.
Now it's a bit difficult to define those people's point of life. Those that are very serious, probably try to do everything they can to help other people, do good deeds, the whole shebang that will hopefully get them into heaven. In other words, they try to follow the rules/guidelines(?) the bible/god gives them, in order to earn eternal life. Now those that don't take religion too seriously - most of them choose which rules they want to follow. Like the sex one.
So where's the point in that kind of life when they know in the back of their head they probably won't make it no matter what they do now?

btw grimfang, ever read 'the purpose driven life'? it's supposed to be good.
[/b]

While there is life, there is hope and the possibility of divine grace. While one still lives, one can still repent. I will now illustrate with a brief summary of the hagiography of Saint Olga of Pskov:

Olga grew up as a noblewoman in the Ukraine and married the prince of Kiev. After the murder of her husband, she rounded up all of his enemies and all of their followers and made mountains of their skulls. You will note that I say 'his enemies', not 'his murderers', as that is what she did. Possibly, she decided that killing all of her dead husband's enemies would solve the problem of figuring out which of them was responsible-- kill them all and let the various gods collect their own. Later, she converted to christianity and started the process of converting the Ukraine, that and a couple of miracles after her death is what made her a saint.

If former mass murderers can become saints, we can extrapolate that repentant fornicators can also get to heaven. However, those that desire to get to heaven have to stop sinning. It does not have to mean going to a priest and confessing, but it does require one to acknowledge that sin is wrong and to resolve to stop sinning.

[punch999]

Did someone ask why sex is pleasurable?

[rlbell]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(carpetsmoker @ Aug 20 2006, 02:12 AM) [snapback]249685[/snapback]</div>

I have a question for he religious people here:
We die, and we go to either heaven or hell.
Then we'll go and live forever in heaven...?
What's the point in that?

[/b]

If you cannot understand the point of being in the presence of God, how can you expect anyone to explain it to you?

However, as I fell like tilting at windmills: Being in communion with God in heaven is probably at least as pleasurable as a perpetual cocaine high that somehow preserves judgement and objectivity, and is totally without the nasty come-down.

The flip side is being denied the presence of God while knowing that it was your choices in life that put you there. It is the come-down from the euphoria that was life, but it never ends and it never gets better.

[Iowa]

Alright, i'm jumping in without having read basically any of the board at all (it's about midnight here...go easy on me) because I feel pretty strongly about my religious views [just glance at my signature and avatar].

Did someone ask why sex is pleasurable?[/b]

Sex is pleasurable because when we have sex we are following the very goal of our species: to make more of us. If the sensation of reproduction is pleasurable, heck, why not do it again and have another child? There would not be so many humans on Earth if sex felt like cracking a bone.

Right then, I believe that the story of God, Satan, Heaven, Hell...any of those stories that we call religions of any sort at any location and being used at any time are simply that: stories. There's nothing special about them, yet we choose to define our way of life, communication, and behavior by them. Think about it: millions and millions of people have died without cause or need, why? Because people long ago were superstitious enough to want to create a story with which to amaze, impress, and in a very sick way, inform. Religion is simply folklore used to control masses, but who is the controller? Us. We control our own destiny, our own way of life, and our own desicions...yet we choose to take the easy path and let a book do it for us. If this is how we operate, throwing our lives at a book written by a group of various storytellers, than I refuse to place us as the dominant species. If this is how we are going to act, than we are no more powerful than the plastic used to make your keyboard, the fly buzzing about your moniter, or the random electronic signals sent to display the data by which you view this statement now. There is no dominant species, no future to fight for, and therefore, no meaning of life whatsoever. We exist only to make more of ourselves until the resources of our worldy domain are gone and we die, actions most akin to a virus.

Because I brought up my avatar, I almost for certain that someone's is going to say "You display the symbol of unholy evil, so that must be what you believe in and what you stand for. You are nothing but a hypocrite to display views of disbelief." and in answer, I say this: the pentagram is most commonly ascociated with Satan, the fictional figure of ultimate evil, however, symols can be interpreted in more ways than one. I interpret the fact that the pentagram stands for what Satan is supposed to be: evil, mysery, uncaring, depression, and hate. I display this because it is what I am attracted to, the dark side of life is the most interesting and rewarding in my opinion, although I may also liken my love of darkness to the amount that I experience in my life, but I won't bore you about myelf. Don't think that because I am attracted to evil that I am in turn, evil myself, because this is (for the most part) untrue; I have values, morals, and I would in no way kill somebody unless it's absolutely neccesary...I may think I want to kill someone, a thought I get quite often I admit, but I know that I most likely couldn't do it.

I say your beliefs are false, because that statement alone are mine. I do not mean to offend anyone in my statements, nor am I trying to convert anyone...you'd only be bringing good upon yourself by seeing the truth but...I guess some people have to live the lie. These are my beliefs and views. Pick them apart and criticise them at your will, but it's what I believe, and there's no way i'd trade the truth for an eternity in heaven any day.

[Quintopotere]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Mighty Midget @ Aug 19 2006, 07:26 PM) [snapback]249654[/snapback]</div>

If we don't recognize something, I'd say we're ignorant to the potential existence. Then it would be truly absurd to claim it exsists.
[/b]

Come on, I wasn't saying "because I don't see it, it exist"
Just something to think about: every one believe that matter exist, cause they "see" it, but from a phisical point of view it is not stricly necessary, cause atoms and their components can be substituted just with energy fields and all can still function in the same way. When you touch something you only feel the repulsion force between the atoms, but you are not truly "touching something".

Originally posted by rlbell+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(rlbell)</div>

As far as I know (but I can be wrong), humans and dolphins are the only animals having pleasure with sex, while for the others is just some kind of instinct, but many other races keep care their brats.

<!--QuoteBegin-carpetsmoker
- We go to heaven to live forever ... now, I think "forever" is an awfull long time, with or without the 72 virgins some Muslim seem to get, so this option seems equally unpleasent..

That's not a paradox!
Time is only a human dimension. God (and hopefully we after the death) doesn't live IN time (which is His creation) so there will not be a forever like "boring-very-long-time" :wallbash:
And talking for experience, love (not sex) "hardly" became boring, even now that we are stupid humans...

Originally posted by Iowa
I guess some people have to live the lie.

I agree absolutely with that! But the question is: who his living a lie?

I'm just a stupid human and, apart from my own believes, I hope you all will have a good life. k:

[Grinder]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(carpetsmoker @ Aug 20 2006, 02:12 AM) [snapback]249685[/snapback]</div>

I have a question for he religious people here:
We die, and we go to either heaven or hell.
Then we'll go and live forever in heaven...?
What's the point in that?

Also, if there's a God, and he'll exist forever, what's the point in that?
[/b]

Probably one that the human mind is uncapable of understanding.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(carpetsmoker @ Aug 20 2006, 02:12 AM) [snapback]249685[/snapback]</div>

We go to heaven to live forever ... now, I think "forever" is an awfull long time, with or without the 72 virgins some Muslim seem to get, so this option seems equally unpleasent..
[/b]

Come on, what is it worth wondering about the point of life when you have 72 virgins for eternity

[Mighty Midget]

But if they stay that way, it sort of diminish the value of it all, doesn't it? :P

Ok, 'nuff jokes on religion for me.

As I see it, there's no purpose or meaning to be found, but that does not make it pointless. To say it's pointless would be extremly narcissistic, egomaniac and megalomaniac, implying that there already is a meaning ("it has to be, us being humans, the top of the ladder, the brightest, most beautiful and so on, creature on Earth and all. I cannot accept the possibility that such a superb creature does not serve a purpose"). Sort of a contradiction there.

As this thread pointed at the point of existence, not the meaning of it, I'd say that you'll have to make that up for yourself, as long as you keep in the back of your mind that you made it up. Believe what you want, as long as that belief helps you in any way and does not limits the possibilities of others. Fill your life with whatever suits you, be it food, sex, a nice job, art, any god, philosophy, music, golf or whatever. So there, a pont good enough for ye?

[Grinder]

At least a positive enough one

BUT the thing with the virgins is that IF the muslims do indeed believe they get 72 virgins for eternity, Allah has to keep his promise, right? So once the guy has de-virgin-ized 72 women, the next 72 (clones maybe?) swoop in.